According to reports in the Sun, Manchester United are convinced to push ahead with the signing to Declan Rice from West Ham – yet West Ham will surely be less convinced.
West Ham fans will have to get used to the banality of rolling their eyes at yet another traditional English giant supposedly being on the verge of pulling out all the stops to convince West Ham to part with their coveted academy graduate.
Supposedly, Solskjaer has convinced key United figures John Murtough and Darren Fletcher to green-light the move for Rice as United look to challenge for the title.
Yet not enough is being said about one simple fact.
Valued at almost £50 million by Transfermarkt and under contract until 2024, West Ham have no pressure to sell.
Rice is settled in a Moyes system that has seen him form a dynamic role as a deeper-lying playmaker with robust defensive qualities. Partnering Tomas Soucek has raised his game, and both men spearhead the connection between attack and defence.
Few would refute the scintillating, enticing prospect of Declan Rice playing at the highest levels both for club and country, but West Ham are not exactly short of ambition themselves.
The tale the Premier League table shows is of an ambitious point-picking West Ham size oozing with consistency and in the hunt for European football.
Were the Hammers to make it to Europe, that should be enough to quell any stirring ambitions of a move elsewhere for Rice – at least for a season.
At the end of next season, and with a far more modest amount of time left on his current deal, that would represent a far more apt moment to cash in for a significant profit on their star asset whilst generating plenty of funds for both a quality replacement and further investment.
The Irons can laugh off interest in Rice for the time being – a sale at this stage would be nauseatingly nonsensical.
